Treatment of Enemy Aliens

The English Custodian. The outbreak of the war found in nearly every belligerent country vast amounts of property, both real and personal, owned by persons of enemy nationality or domicile. Likewise, enemy persons were the owners or shareholders in many business and industrial enterprises, corporations, partnerships, etc. With a view to preventing such property from being used or such business from being conducted in a manner prejudicial to the national defense or for the benefit of the enemy, the governments of all the belligerent countries very early adopted measures for placing enemy-owned property and enemy business enterprises under the control or supervision of the public authorities.